illustrations of Nizami’sKhamsa(see Chapter 3), the image offers a
sophisticated meditation on the interplay between licit and forbidden
desires.
Like the poem, the image represents the mystical longing for union with
God: it shows the elusive/illusive desire to perceive God through the
physical senses. More than the numerous images depicting the Prophet
Muhammad as illustrations of the narrative of his prophecy, this image
functions as a rare religious image in terms of guiding the internalized
ritual practice of faith.^77 Rather than showing‘what’happened in the
history of faith, it provides an example of‘how’faith happens.
The painting depicts the palace as if it were a dollhouse, in which
exterior walls, seen at the bottom with a door that is closed, open to several
intertwined interior spaces. Although the seven doors depicted, including
those framing the dynamic staircase, are closed, thefiguresfly through
space as Yusuf’s realization of the omniscience of God releases him from
the trap of lust. Hefloats over a room with a niche framed with calligraphic
cartouches, providing a visual counterpart to Zuleikha’s recognition of his
beauty as a mihrab.
As with theAllegory of Worldly and Otherworldly Drunkenness(see
Chapter 2.2), the image suggests the seeming opposition (tanzih) in simi-
litude (tashbih) between her desire and the act of devotion. The dynamic
movement of the twofigures through a space otherwise characterized by a
series of closed doors underscores the necessity of Yusuf’s miracle not only
for his own transcendence beyond temptation, but also for Zuleikha who,
in her pursuit of him, oversteps the boundaries of physicality. Like the
seven climes in Nizami’sThe Seven Icons, the seven rooms of the palace
represent the sensory world of desire.^78 Their feetfloat above the ground.
He moves because she pursues him; she moves because she cannot let him
go. Their transcendence of the seduction of sexual desire depends on their
rejection of the erotic images decorating the palace, as well as the idol. The
sumptuous palace represents the dynamic urgency of their movement
beyond its physical boundaries. Rather than illustrating the idol, reveling
in the seduction, or showing the scrap of fabric condemning Zuleikha, the
painting underscores the transcendence of movement through the closed
palace of form at the very moment when Yusuf has found‘meaning’in his
rejection of the idol. Lamia Balafrej interprets this painting less as illustrat-
ing the poem than responding to it in the classical sense of call and answer
(jawab), as in the musical tradition.^79 Speaking more broadly of the role of(^77) Gruber,2009. (^78) Singh,2017: 78. (^79) Balafrej,2019.
252 The Transgressive Image